


where's the medic?

by fullmetalscully



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Injury, Gen, Guilt, Gunshot Wounds, Parental Riza Hawkeye
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-28 11:55:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30139209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fullmetalscully/pseuds/fullmetalscully
Summary: Riza and Alphonse work together on a mission. An unforeseen event brings their plans to a grinding halt
Relationships: Alphonse Elric & Riza Hawkeye
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12





	where's the medic?

**Author's Note:**

> prompt: "where's the medic?" from anon on tumblr

He shouldn’t have even been there. Riza had her reservations about allowing Alphonse to join the mission, however he was an adult and could make his own decisions. She chalked it up to her slight overprotectiveness towards him, after all he’d been through in life already. He could have easily hung back and remained on the side-lines, however Al insisted.

Her concerns were voiced, and the team readily listened and accepted them. They trusted her authority on security details. Riza was only concerned for Alphonse’s safety, however, she could recognise when to take a moment to pause and gauge how much of her fears may be erring on the side of being slightly irrational. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry, Riza thought as she dismissed her self-doubt.

It also didn’t stop her from being hyper aware of their surroundings at all times or on the look-out for any potential dangers. She kept quiet about her increased protective detail, shouldering the responsibility alone and taking it even more seriously when a bad feeling suddenly started to coil inside her gut halfway through the mission. Riza always trusted her gut, so when something did begin to feel off, she started walking towards Al and opened her mouth to suggest moving away from their current position.

But Riza hadn’t been quick enough.

When Riza saw Alphonse fall to the ground after a muffled _pop_ there were no thoughts of ‘I was right’. Only pure horror. Bile accompanied that fear when she witnessed a red stain blossoming on his crisp white shirt. It spread like ink soaking into paper.

“We need a medic!” Riza yelled over her shoulder as she started to run.

People scrambled behind her and were barking orders but Riza was completely focussed on Alphonse. The world slowed and it felt as though she couldn’t get to him fast enough. The painful feeling of her knees crashing to the ground was never felt. Instead, all that was present was terror and the sickening feeling of Alphonse’s blood sliding between her fingers as she put pressure on his wound. She cradled the back of his head to protect it from hitting off the concrete beneath them repeatedly as his body jerked and heaved with choked breaths.

“Easy, Al,” Riza commanded firmly while encouraging him to lie as still as he could. Her tone was much calmer than it should have been. It sounded as if she was trying to soothe him after a small abrasion, something small and insignificant, instead of a gunshot wound. It was too relaxed compared to what was inside of her. Riza’s stomach was roiling and her mind was going into overdrive as it went through the motions of trying to stabilise Al as quickly and as best she could.

She’d been in the field and had seen her fair share of gunshot trauma. Riza was intimately familiar with the effects of those types of wounds, however it never got any easier to witness. It was exceptionally difficult when it was someone she knew. A close friend. A young man who’d gone through so much already and who was on the road to recovery. This would set him back and slow his progress. Guilt gnawed on her stomach painfully.

Riza put more pressure was put on the wound and Alphonse groaned. A whimper passed by his lips and Riza’s heart broke in two.

“Al?”

His head rolled in place and his eyes opened. They were unfocussed as he blinked slowly.

“Al, can you hear me?”

“Yes.” It was a broken whisper, almost a whine, but it was a response, nonetheless.

“Al, I’m right here, okay?”

“Lieu…” He couldn’t even finish the word.

“That’s right. It’s Hawkeye. It’s Riza.”

“It hurts,” he whimpered.

“I know, Al. I know.” Riza wasn’t sure what compelled her to reach over and brush his fringe off his forehead and place a comforting hand on his forehead, but she felt it was both warranted and needed for the two of them. “I’m so sorry.”

He groaned and his eyes closed.

“Al? Stay with me, please.” Her voice cracked as she spoke her request. She wouldn’t lose him to this. He had so much more to do and give to the world. He was one of the brightest boys she knew, and Riza refused to let that shining light go out. Not on her watch.

“ _Where’s the medic?_ ” Her demand was an agitated yell this time. She was breaking down.

“Right here, sir,” a voice replied close by her ear. Riza didn’t even turn to look at them. She simply moved aside and let them in so they could administer treatment.

Riza latched onto Alphonse’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

“I’m still here, Al,” she called to him as the two medics efficiently worked over him. “Right here. I’m not going anywhere. You’re in good hands. They’re going to start working on you now, then we’ll get you to the hospital, all right?” Riza never even registered that her voice cracked while she spoke. Her relocation had resulted in Riza kneeling by Al’s head, so she placed her non-bloody hand back atop his forehead. She ran her hand over his hair to try and soothe him, watching critically as the medics worked to save him.

“Riza?” He sounded so small and childlike. Nothing like the grinning young man he’d grown into.

“Yes?” Her eyes snapped down to look at his golden ones. Alphonse’s face was drawn, and he grimaced and grunted in pain, but there was a tiny smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Thank you.”

Riza blinked down at Alphonse. His face scrunched up in agony and he let out a broken groan while his eyes squeezed tightly closed. Her chest tightened.

“Rest easy, Al. I’ve got you and I’m not going to leave your side.”

* * *

It was three days before she got the call.

“He’s awake.”

Relief washed over Riza in a wave. She exhaled slowly. It felt like if she moved too quickly she may unravel, so Riza kept her movements slow and controlled. Those two words were the ones she wanted to hear most, and it didn’t hit her until Edward told her just how badly she’d been waiting for them. Riza’s knees shook while standing on the phone.

“And?”

“He’ll be okay.” Edward sounded optimistic. There was a sprinkle of his exhaustion in there too, but overall he sounded pleased. “The doctors expect he will make a full recovery. It will just take a little time.”

Riza’s gut clenched. More time for Alphonse to spend in recovery. More of his life put on hold. If she’d been quicker, she could have spared him of that.

“ _Don’t blame yourself for this_ ,” the Colonel had stressed, as if he could read her mind. Havoc had offered the same sentiment too. But Riza would. It was because of her that Alphonse was lying in a hospital bed with a gunshot wound. _She_ had been tasked with his protection. She should have been more vigilant, taken more precautions, taken more back up with them to better cover the area.

“He’s been asking to see you. Al was wondering if you were all right.”

Riza took a deep breath. “I can come in, if he’d like?”

“I think that would be best. He’s worried about you, Lieutenant.”

“Me?” She scoffed in disbelief, wondering how on Earth Alphonse could possibly be worried about her.

“Yes. He wants to talk to you and see for himself that you’re all right. He –” Edward paused, and she heard him swallow. Riza gripped the phone tighter and wondered what could have possibly tripped him up. “Al remembers what happened. He remembers you talking to him throughout it.”

Riza’s heart thudded inside her chest.

“Well, I’ll let him tell you the rest. He wants to.”

“Okay. I’ll be there shortly. And thank you Ed.”

“For what?”

“For telling me that. And for phoning.”

“No problem, Lieutenant.”

* * *

Steeling herself, Riza took a deep breath and opened the door to Alphonse’s hospital room. Edward beckoning response was friendly and didn’t sound strained, so that counted for something. Still, Riza was unsure what would await her on the other side of the door. She’d seen Al malnourished and weak before but seeing him like that again… Riza didn’t want that for Alphonse. He deserved all the good things life had to offer him. He’d fought to get his body back and deserved time to live in it and use it to its fullest.

He was sitting up in bed. As soon as Al saw her, his face lit up with a grin. He looked tired and there were dark circles under his eyes, but he still had a friendly smile for her. “Hello, Lieutenant,” Al greeted warmly.

“It’s good to see you,” Edward added.

“Hi. It’s good to see you both too,” Riza replied.

“Come in, sit,” Ed beckoned. He stood from his chair and offered it to her. “I’ll give you two some time to talk,” Edward excused himself. The door was closed quietly behind him.

“How are you doing, Alphonse?”

“Doing okay,” he replied with a smile. “Getting better already.”

Riza couldn’t help but return his grin. It was always so bright and happy. But hers quickly fell as Riza’s guilt started to niggle in her mind. “Good, I’m pleased to hear it.”

“Lieutenant?”

She glanced over at him. Riza noted the look in his eyes. It was familiar, because she’d seen it on the faces of two of her co-workers already when they told her not to blame herself for what happened.

“I knew the risks going into this mission. I accepted that and still chose to go. That was on me.”

Riza wasn’t sure if she should be bothered by the fact that so many people seemed to be able to tell what she was thinking in regard to this situation.

“But I remember it all. I remember you talking to me and helping me through it, and I wanted to thank you in person for being there for me. It meant a lot to me.”

“Of course, Al,” she replied softly. “You’re welcome.”

“It was a big help and a nice comfort. I’m glad you were there,” he added softly.

Riza nodded, unable to offer him anything further.

“Make sure you get plenty of rest, okay?” Riza reached over and patted the back of his hand gently. “And go easy on your brother if he starts to fret.”

“ _Starts_ to fret?” Alphonse chuckled and Riza couldn’t help but join in. After witnessing Edward’s stress levels while they waited for Al to wake up, Riza didn’t doubt he’d already slipped into the protective older brother role once more and was hovering over Alphonse.

“He was worried about you. We all were.”

“Sorry to have kept you wondering for a bit,” he apologised sheepishly.

Riza shook her head with a quiet laugh. “You’re awake now. That’s all that matters.”

“And I’ll be out of here before you know it,” he nodded with determination. A confident smirk played on Al’s lips. He’d already accomplished the impossible with his brother, so Riza didn’t doubt that he would be.

That was all Riza wanted for him; to be happy, healthy, and living his life to the fullest.


End file.
